Chapter 11

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Translator: MadScientist

Chapter: 11

Chapter Title: Mage's Paradigm

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Now it was time to get back to my main job.

The moment I opened the door, a scorching heat burrowed deep into my lungs. My clone was still tirelessly hammering away without a hint of fatigue, and seeing his back brought a satisfied smile to my face.

'You're always so reliable.'

I deftly lit the furnace and dove into crafting the staff. Mages always struggled with mana shortages, so it was about time I gave them some breathing room.

The work was proceeding smoothly when my vision flushed red, and an alien warning window popped up.

'Danger levels? Catastrophe?'

A chill ran down my spine, and I gripped the hammer tighter. This wasn't just crafting correction. The system was clearly detecting a future disaster that hadn't happened yet and using me as a conduit to prepare countermeasures.

'A simple monster wave... doesn't explain this.'

It felt like there was already some desperate reason this weapon had to be made right now. But I couldn't stop hammering. My hands were already moving under the system's will, so I surrendered to the flow.

Clang-!

A world-shaking explosion rang out, accompanied by a burst of intense light.

"Holy... shit."

This wasn't just any staff. It was a mobile magic artillery battery that flipped the mage's combat style on its head.

One S-grade commander marks coordinates up front, and the rear mage legion unleashes spells from safe bunkers? It was an infinite ammo belt with uninterrupted supply lines—an immortal artillery unit.

Shivers running down my spine, I immediately called Irmi.

"Chief! Please bring Kim O-jun, leader of Wiz Guild. Right now! It's urgent!"

A moment later, space rippled, and Kim O-jun appeared—Korea's top archmage and an S-grade hunter. White hair, pointed wizard hat. The classic mage look, but his eyes burned with sharp intensity.

"Hey! Do-ha! What trouble have you stirred up now? My heart can't take it."

"This isn't the time for jokes. Take a look at this."

Kim O-jun's eyes widened as he examined the staff, soon filling with shock. The mana density emanating from it shattered every magical principle he'd known in his life.

"Ha... haha... hahahahaha!"

He burst into mad laughter that echoed through the forge. It wasn't joy—it was the hollow reaction to overwhelming power.

Kim O-jun was speechless for a while. The staff's mana flow, the seamless spellcasting without incantations, the perfect solo combat setup that didn't even need rear support.

"...This."

The laughter faded, seriousness settling in his eyes.

"Is a weapon that lets us pull mages off the front lines."

A moment later, he added lowly.

"No... more precisely, it could eliminate the front line concept altogether."

Mages had always been frail, dying pointless deaths on the battlefield. No matter their firepower, a stray arrow or blade could end them. But with this staff, his subordinates could hunker down in guild bunkers, brew ramen, and just spam spells.

"You're a genius... no, a monster. God must love mages to send you."

"Save the praise. The system warned of high danger levels and granted top options. Prepare for war just in case."

Kim O-jun's face hardened.

"Hm... Monster wave precursors were spotted off the East Sea recently. Sounds ominous."

He clutched the staff close.

"I won't forget this favor. Gotta prepare now. The world might flip by morning."

"Everyone assemble! Emergency duty starts now!"

Kim O-jun's shout dragged sleepy guild members out, clueless and grumpy in the safe underground training ground.

"Guild leader... we're dying here. Third all-nighter."

"What are we doing? Aren't we going out? Sirens are blaring!"

"You don't need to go out! Just cast spells safely from here!"

"From today, the battlefield... is mine alone."

Kim O-jun shared the [Skill Storage] coordinates floating in the air.

"Unload all your magic into these coordinates! Until your mana runs dry! Non-stop!"

The bunker mages began chanting skeptically from safety. [Fireball], [Ice Spear], [Lightning Bolt]... Hundreds of spells transmitted in real-time across space to Kim O-jun's staff at the front.

At that moment.

Hunter Association central control room.

"Mana reaction... it's not a wave."

"The density's completely different. This is!"

The screen showed not red dots, but a massive wall.

"This isn't a wave."

The controller's voice trembled in terror.

"It's a moving catastrophe."

The system's prophecy was spot on. The shadow of destruction loomed over Korea once more.

Kim O-jun stood alone on the battlefield, an endless monster sea before him. Orc Lords, Troll Warriors, Wyvern squadrons... The horde filling his vision charged, shaking the earth.

"Quite the numbers."

But he didn't retreat. A leisurely smile curved his lips, and his staff hummed. Hundreds of disciples' mana pulsed through him from the bunker like blood in veins.

Like the pressure before a massive dam unleashes.

"I'll show you. This is true bombardment!"

Kim O-jun raised the staff high, the system responding to his will.

The staff tip flashed, colors inverting across the world.

"Begone, you scum!"

Kaboom-!!!

The first strike was crimson hell. Dozens of massive fireballs slammed down, roaring thunderously.

"Kieeeek!"

An Ogre Lord—that normally took dozens of hunters to fell—evaporated without a scream. Neither tough muscles nor magic resistance mattered against this overwhelming firepower; it vanished in white light, leaving only a shadow. The ground melted into boiling lava.

Then icy hell followed.

"Freeze."

[Blizzard] blanketed the bubbling earth. Extreme temperature ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠shifts shattered troll steel skin like glass. Even their regeneration couldn't keep up; thousands became ice statues, crumbling.

The sky was worse.

"Dare fly overhead?"

Hundreds of wyverns claiming air superiority were ensnared by [Chain Lightning] spiderwebbing from his fingertips.

Zzzzzap-! Crackle!

"Kieek!"

Blue thunder pierced hearts, chaining to neighbors. One spell chained hundreds of flying monsters. Charred corpses rained like hellish sleet.

True terror came last.

"Fall!"

Storm clouds tore, house-sized meteors pouring like rain. Meteor Strike—an S-grade spell squeezing every drop of one mage's mana—now machine-gunned down.

Boom-! Boom-! BOOM-!

Each impact reshaped terrain. Mountains vanished into craters, rivers twisted, forests erased. Top-tier magic bombarded every 0.1 seconds.

The air reeked of burning over blood. This wasn't war. It was unilateral slaughter, physical erasure.

"Hahaha! Sweep them all! Leave no trace!"

With Kim O-jun's mad laughter, the monster wave vanished from the map.

Battlefield outskirts, rooftop of a collapsed building.

Sylphsong, blended into the shadows with arms crossed, overlooked the field. Noise, mana flows, hidden killing intent—all in her sensory net.

"...Boring."

This scale should have triggered national emergency, half the hunters dead. But Do-ha's gear redefined the front line; victory was sealed.

"That old man Kim O-jun's having a blast. Looks rejuvenated."

No role for her with him covering solo. As a yawn rose, her senses caught an alien presence.

"Got a rat."

Blood, Black Dragon Society's Chinese S-grade villain exec, targeted Kim O-jun's unguarded back amid the chaos.

"Opening! Old man! Your head's mine!"

Blood's crimson dagger aimed for Kim O-jun's neck.

Swish-

The world flipped monochrome. Blood felt his blade slice air. A chilling voice from hell grazed his ear from behind.

"Where you going? Rat."

"Hiiik?!"

Blood spun, but Sylphsong's [Shadow Aura] tentacles bound his limbs.

"You... how are you here? No presence!"

"How? This is my turf."

Sylphsong smirked mockingly, flicking her hand at the air.

Slash-!

"Gaaak!"

Blood's arms severed effortlessly. Blood fountained.

"You dare."

Her eyes narrowed.

"Touch the weapon of someone I protect? Don't know your place."

She knocked him out, tossing him like trash into a shadow prison.

Then.

"Hoo... impressive."

A heavy, murky aura descended, distinct from battlefield heat. Sylphsong's eyes widened emerging from shadow space.

"Sylph... song. Sorry..."

The blood-soaked Off Guild leader staggered into view.

"Found you. Queen of Shadows."

Black Dragon Society's boss smiled, black dragon robe billowing.

"And."

His gaze shifted not to the field, but toward the Association building where Do-ha was.

"The man who made this board."